Manpower (1941)

User Rating:

7.0/10   

Director:

Raoul Walsh

Writers:

Richard Macaulay (original screenplay) and
Jerry Wald (original screenplay)

Release Date:

9 August 1941 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Crime

Tagline:

Raft and Robinson are at the brawling point!

Plot:

Hank McHenry and Johnny Marshall work on a road crew for the power company. In a freak accident Hank is injured and is promoted to foreman of the gang...

Plot Keywords:

Power Company | Ice | Police Raid | Attempted Murder | Wedding

Cast

Edward G. Robinson	...	Hank 'Gimpy' McHenry
Marlene Dietrich	...	Fay Duval
George Raft	...	Johnny Marshall
Alan Hale	...	Jumbo Wells
Frank McHugh	...	Omaha
Eve Arden	...	Dolly
Barton MacLane	...	Smiley Quinn
Ward Bond	...	Eddie Adams
Walter Catlett	...	Sidney Whipple
Joyce Compton	...	Scarlett
Lucia Carroll	...	Flo
Egon Brecher	...	Antoine 'Pop' Duval
Cliff Clark	...	Cully
Joseph Crehan	...	Sweeney
Ben Welden	...	Al Hurst

Runtime:

USA:103 min (Turner library print) | USA:104 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

Australia:PG | Finland:K-16 | USA:Approved | Sweden:15

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

While visiting his friend George Raft on the set, Bugsy Siegel was introduced to Virginia Hill as depicted in the film Bugsy (1991). There's a scene where Raft gets into a brawl with Barton MacLane that is depicted in Bugsy (1991).

Quotes:

Fay Duval: I don't get anything out of this joint but tired.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Bugsy (1991)

Soundtrack:

Chinatown, My Chinatown

Exciting and powerful

"Manpower", made for Warner Bros. in 1941, is one of the most exciting and pleasurable of all classic action adventures. It's great to see the positive reviews from fellow users; I have been looking forward to it for some time and I finally saw it. What a picture! I'm a huge Raoul Walsh fan and "Manpower" ranks with the director's greatest works - "Me and My Gal", "The Roaring Twenties", "Gentleman Jim", "The Strawberry Blonde", "Objective, Burma", "Pursued", et al. The film is extraordinary for a number of reasons, but the most obvious reason is a top notch cast: Edward G. Robinson, Marlene Dietrich, George Raft, Ward Bond, Alan Hale, Eve Arden, and the lovable Frank McHugh, performing his hilarious shenanigans and slapstick.

The film concerns a group of emergency power repairmen who work on a high voltage power lines during ferocious storms. Throughout "Manpower", Walsh emphasizes group camaraderie and the strong bond of working class Americans. It is also filled with Walsh's trademark boyish gusto and unsophisticated Irish ribaldry, but it somehow lacks the bittersweet nostalgia and wistfulness of "Strawberry Blonde" and "Gentleman Jim".

The same way Walsh's "Strawberry Blonde" is a remake of a charming 1933 Gary Cooper vehicle called "One Sunday Afternoon", "Manpower" is a remake of Howard Hawks'1932 adventure "Tiger Shark", also starring Edward G. Robinson as a tuna fisherman. Here, Robinson plays power lineman who happens to be in love with an ex-con girl, sensitively played by Marlene Dietrich. Robinson's rival is George Raft and their climactic aerial duel amidst jolting electric wires are among the highlights of the film's stunning action scenes.